#help girl im emotional over little ghost and the abysslings again

[ruthlesslistener]

Tbh, I think something that is very important for the Hollow Knight fandom to understand is that love and kindness do not necessarily mean that the person giving them is making the right choice, even if they themselves think otherwise. Just because a character is sympathetic or nice does not mean that they are making the right decision, or that they are incapable of cruelty. There is no good or evil, no black or white morality, but that does not excuse the harm that is done. And perhaps it is an excellent lesson worth learning, for it is often those who are most passionate about their affections that end up causing the most harm trying to protect them.

The Radiance was fighting for her life when she caused the infection. She was scared, and she was angry, and she was betrayed by those that she loved the most, but still she harmed others in her attempt to escape, harmed them cruelly and callously. None of the tribes of Hallownest are to blame for the actions of gods, but they were punished all the same, for crimes that they did not commit. She loved her family, and she hated the cruel creatures that took them from her, so she burned the whole world down so that they might feel the depth of suffering that she experienced.

The White Lady thought that she was making the right decision when she agreed to the vessel plan. She thought that she was doing all that she could to save her kingdom, and gave her all to save the lives of many. But she still let the kingdom fall to ruin around her while she languished in her grief, and watched passively as countless children died. Both she and her husband blessed their followers, but they turned away from the suffering of both them and their children when it became inconvenient or overwhelming to them.

The Pale King loved the Hollow Knight, and grieved the vessels that he lost. He loved them so dearly that he, arrogant god-king that he was, wrote it on tablets by their birthplace and gave them a statue so that they could never be forgotten, though the punishment of being forgotten is the only death that could ever matter to a god such as them. He loved them so deeply that when he cast himself into the dream realm, he dedicated an entire subsection to remembering a peaceful moment he had with them, guarded better than even his own corpse. But that did not stop him from filling the Abyss with the bodies of their siblings. That did not stop him from sealing them away to die a slow, horrible death, or from leaving his last living child an orphan condemned to murder her own siblings. That did not stop him from ignoring what scared him, forcing innocents into burdens they could not carry, and then running away to die a coward's death when the concept of losing everything to him made itself a reality.

Actions speak louder than words. And honestly, in a game where the protagonist has no means to speak, or express themselves in any manner other than how they treat other people, I think the juxtaposition between intent and harm done is something that is significant. The Knight cannot speak, cannot emote, cannot do anything that can easily label them as nice and just, or sad and remorseful. But they treat others with a kindness, even if it's not returned to them. When they find Zote struggling in Deepnest, they still cut him free, because under his grousing and grumbling, he's still a defenseless innocent who has no means of getting out on their own. When they find the Grey Mourner crying in her home, they still take up her arduous request to carry a flower to the grave of her loved one, despite having the ability to deny her. And despite how awkward or awful that quest is, they still gift those delicate flowers to those who seem to be terribly lonely, even if two out of three of the receivers were awfully rude to them in the past. They listen to Hornet when she mourns her mother, and they sit with Quirrel when he contemplates his life on the shores of the Blue Lake, and they kill the sibling they strove to save when they see them suffering, because even if they have been trodden upon and forced into a cruel, unforgiving life, they do not bury their pain with shallow words when it inconveniences them, or force others to suffer for their selfishness.

A person can be nice. A person can be a good ruler, or a sympathetic god, or someone you once thought of as a kindly old lady who'd keep your geo safe for you on a long, dangerous journey, but that doesn't mean jack shit if their actions hurt you in the long run, and it doesn't mean jack fucking shit if they don't make any attempt to heal the harm that they did to you in the past.

[aenramsden]

Tags from @ruthlesslistener​:

#HOLLOW KNIGHT #THE PALE KING #THE WHITE LADY #THE RADIANCE #THE KNIGHT #LITTLE GHOST #HELP GIRL IM EMOTIONAL OVER LITTLE GHOST AND THE ABYSSLINGS AGAIN #AND HONESTLY? I THINK THE REASON WHY HK IS SUCH A COMFORT TO ME IS BC THE ANTAGONISTS ARE ALL SO RELATABLE AND 'KIND' #ALL OF THEM HAD GOOD INTENTIONS #ALL OF THEM ARE SYMPATHETIC #ALL OF THEM SUFFERED #BUT THEY TREATED THEIR EMOTIONS IN A WAY THAT HARMED OTHERS REGARDLESS AND THATS UNFORGIVABLE #SO MUCH ABUSE IS BORNE OF LOVE #SO MUCH HURT HAPPENS BECAUSE PEOPLE LOVE YOU AND THEY WANT YOU TO BE SAFE #BUT THEY ARE TOO SELFISH TO SUFFER OR GRIEVE OR LET YOU GO #SO THEY SHACKLE AND HURT YOU INSTEAD

Tbh, I think something that is very important for the Hollow Knight fandom to understand is that love and kindness do not necessarily mean that the person giving them is making the right choice, even if they themselves think otherwise. Just because a character is sympathetic or nice does not mean that they are making the right decision, or that they are incapable of cruelty. There is no good or evil, no black or white morality, but that does not excuse the harm that is done. And perhaps it is an excellent lesson worth learning, for it is often those who are most passionate about their affections that end up causing the most harm trying to protect them.

The Radiance was fighting for her life when she caused the infection. She was scared, and she was angry, and she was betrayed by those that she loved the most, but still she harmed others in her attempt to escape, harmed them cruelly and callously. None of the tribes of Hallownest are to blame for the actions of gods, but they were punished all the same, for crimes that they did not commit. She loved her family, and she hated the cruel creatures that took them from her, so she burned the whole world down so that they might feel the depth of suffering that she experienced.

The White Lady thought that she was making the right decision when she agreed to the vessel plan. She thought that she was doing all that she could to save her kingdom, and gave her all to save the lives of many. But she still let the kingdom fall to ruin around her while she languished in her grief, and watched passively as countless children died. Both she and her husband blessed their followers, but they turned away from the suffering of both them and their children when it became inconvenient or overwhelming to them.

The Pale King loved the Hollow Knight, and grieved the vessels that he lost. He loved them so dearly that he, arrogant god-king that he was, wrote it on tablets by their birthplace and gave them a statue so that they could never be forgotten, though the punishment of being forgotten is the only death that could ever matter to a god such as them. He loved them so deeply that when he cast himself into the dream realm, he dedicated an entire subsection to remembering a peaceful moment he had with them, guarded better than even his own corpse. But that did not stop him from filling the Abyss with the bodies of their siblings. That did not stop him from sealing them away to die a slow, horrible death, or from leaving his last living child an orphan condemned to murder her own siblings. That did not stop him from ignoring what scared him, forcing innocents into burdens they could not carry, and then running away to die a coward's death when the concept of losing everything to him made itself a reality.

Actions speak louder than words. And honestly, in a game where the protagonist has no means to speak, or express themselves in any manner other than how they treat other people, I think the juxtaposition between intent and harm done is something that is significant. The Knight cannot speak, cannot emote, cannot do anything that can easily label them as nice and just, or sad and remorseful. But they treat others with a kindness, even if it's not returned to them. When they find Zote struggling in Deepnest, they still cut him free, because under his grousing and grumbling, he's still a defenseless innocent who has no means of getting out on their own. When they find the Grey Mourner crying in her home, they still take up her arduous request to carry a flower to the grave of her loved one, despite having the ability to deny her. And despite how awkward or awful that quest is, they still gift those delicate flowers to those who seem to be terribly lonely, even if two out of three of the receivers were awfully rude to them in the past. They listen to Hornet when she mourns her mother, and they sit with Quirrel when he contemplates his life on the shores of the Blue Lake, and they kill the sibling they strove to save when they see them suffering, because even if they have been trodden upon and forced into a cruel, unforgiving life, they do not bury their pain with shallow words when it inconveniences them, or force others to suffer for their selfishness.

A person can be nice. A person can be a good ruler, or a sympathetic god, or someone you once thought of as a kindly old lady who'd keep your geo safe for you on a long, dangerous journey, but that doesn't mean jack shit if their actions hurt you in the long run, and it doesn't mean jack fucking shit if they don't make any attempt to heal the harm that they did to you in the past.